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Wednesday, March 11, 2009

CoffeeShop 20x10 Storyboard PS/PSE Action Set 1!

I absolutely love to make and use storyboard/template actions for Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. Not only do they save space on your hard drive by building your template (actions are tiny compared to huge templates .psd files), but they also crop and load your images for you. It doesn't get much better than that!

This action set builds 4 different 20x10 300 dpi storyboard templates. These are great when you want to display a series of photos. You can get them printed at someplace like Mpix. I saw a cute idea somewhere on Flickr (should have faved it!) where someone had their 20x10 photo mounted to make it stiff and then glued/taped a ribbon on each side of the upper back and hung it up that way. It was casual and really cute, and so much cheaper than buying a custom frame. If you get it mounted you can also rest it on your mantle.

I am working on many more free template actions, so if you don't see one here you like, please keep on checking back. And if you don't want to wait or want something special you don't see here, I do custom work for a small fee.

These template actions have been tested in Photoshop 7 and CS4 and Photoshop Elements 6. They hopefully should run in newer versions of PSE. If the template is not acting correctly, then close down Elements and reboot your computer. That usually solves most of the issues for some reason. Even adding other actions can interfere with the old ones at times. But the old classic Reboot is great to know!

I have so many things sitting on my desktop I have to get finished. I am working on more template actions, B&W PS/PSE Actions, lace brushes, floral patterns, template loading actions, and many more things. I have both photography and digital scrapbooking freebies coming, so please keep on checking back! And again, thank you so much for all of your amazing comments, suggestions, patience, and donations. My list is long and I am slow, but I am having a great time with this blog.

UPDATE, added 3/20/09!!!

I recently released the CoffeeShop 20x10 Storyboard Action Set 1 and I received many great suggestions to improve them. Well, I listened to you (I love my readers!) and here is the same set, with some minor changes.

1. These actions DO NOT flatten the storyboard at the end. This way you can move your images around, Ctrl-T (free transform) them to different sizes, and also change the background color simply by selecting the background layer and Edit, Fill (with the color of your choice). You can also use an image or pattern as your background (make sure to drag it on the bottom of your layer pane).

2. You can add borders to your images. If you don't want borders just press OK when the Stroke box comes up (it is set at 1 px and white and will not be noticeable with the white background, but if you are changing the background make the color the new background color). If you want a border around your image just change the pixel and color to taste!

3. Some of you are having issues with these actions in Photoshop Elements. For you I have included two versions of the templates as images. One is a .jpg where the boxes are black. You can drag your images on top and Ctrl-T them to fit. I also included a .psd (Photoshop) file where you can drag your images UNDER the template and then Ctrl-T (free transform) them to fit.

The "No Borders" CoffeeShop Storyboard action set is still completely valid, it just doesn't add borders (which saves time if you don't want them) and flattens the image at the end. It is the faster action.

Download the CoffeeShop 20x10 Storyboard PS/PSE Action and Template Set 1 HERE or HERE! The download is a zipped file which contains an action set for both PS and PSE for the storyboard with and without borders, plus a folder that has the templates. REMEMBER, to use the PSE actions, you MUST have a random image open before starting it. Then click on the action button, the image will close, and the action will run. Some people are having issues with this file asking for a password, so if you are one of them, just rename the zipped file something basic (like storyboard) and then try to extract it. It should work fine then.

NOTE: BTW, in the storyboard names, B means big and L means little. So BBL means Big photo, Little photo, Little photo. If any of these template actions is not working correctly, please comment below. I had a few versions and I might have become confused!

BIG TIP! If you can't see the crop lines because your image is too small, then just press Ctrl-0 (that is a zero, not an "o") and your image will shrink and the gray background will get huge and you will be able to see where you need to drag the crop bars.

Thanks everyone! And for those of you that are having issues with this working in PSE, what happens when you press Ctrl-Z after the action runs? That brings you back one step and I am curious what the layers look like. Can someone get back with me on that?

I would suggest getting these printed at Mpix, I love their work and their prices are great!

Thank you so much for this Freebie. I want to let you know that I posted a link to your blog in Creative Busy Hands Scrapbook Freebies Search List, under the Photoshop/Gimp Resource(s) (Brush(es), Swatch/Palette, ...) post on Mar. 12, 2009. Thanks again.

Using Crtl + Z does not help, Rita. After the action runs through all the steps there is nothing there but a blank page that says After. There are no layers at all. When going back to Full Edit from Guided where your action player is there is only one layer that says background and is a white page.

Thank you so much for sharing all your actions...I have been a big fan for sometime. I am however having some issues with the storyboard action. I have PSE6, it doesn't always show me the picture I opened to crop, then many time times it just shuts down my PS, weird? Any suggestions that I might do? Thank you again!

Hi Rita! Thank you so much for all of your amazing actions!! I am having trouble unzipping this... it says there is a password. Help?! Anyways, I think you are a genius and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!!

These actions are so awesome!! But this one in particular when I go to extract it it tells me it's password protected, did I miss something-which I am blonde, so you never know-lolThanks so much for all the free stuff, when I get extra funds, I am definitely donating for all of your hard work for all of us:0)

Hello....your actions have changed my photography in so many ways! Thank you so very much for your hard work and talent! One question that others have asked and I don't see an answer. The 20X10 storyboard set asks for a password to unzip the file????

I just checked the first download link and you can extract the file without a password, so have you tried downloading the newest version? I hope this helps!

This action will crash PSE in some computers if they don't have enough memory or other unknown reasons. Just reboot and retry! And make sure to have a random image open before starting, not a template you created earlier.

I'm having a hard time with the fill layer...I'm trying to turn the white border to black and when I go to Edit - Fill, it either gives a black touch to the background of the pictures or puts an entire fill layer of black covering the pictures up. Also, I re- DL'ed the action and they still flatten...HELP! Thanks so much, keep on doing what you do - you're just awesome and much appreciated!

So I'm not the only one having this password issue! It's so strange to because I have downloaded all the other templates and this is the only problem child! Hmmmm! Why would it work for some and not for others?

OK, I see there are issues with the name of this action, thus it won't let you unzip it in some cases. I have changed the name and uploaded the newest version, so please check it out if you haven't been able to get this storyboard to work! Rita

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I am a stay-at-home Mom to two naughty but adorable young boys (Duke is 10 and Imp is 8) in Texas and passionate about photography and photo-editing.
If you love using my free CoffeeShop creations and would like to make a donation to Rita the self-professed photo-editing photography geek of CoffeeShop, please follow this link! This blog is possible because of your generous support.